Machine for cutting and perforating photograph prints from a continuous strip thereof



Apnl 6. 1954 M. KNOBEL 2,674,308

' MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM ACONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF 'iled July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet l Apr 6,1954 M. KNOBEL 2,674,308

, MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM ACONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF Filed July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mania/ WM760 g W5:

Aplll 6, 1954 KNQBEL 2,674,308

MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM A CONTINUOUSSTRIP THEREOF Filed July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 zyw m% 5 1 Apr l 1954M. KNOBEL MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM ACONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF Filed July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 April 6,1954 M. KNOBEL MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTSFROM A CONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF 49 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July l2, 19

REGULATED Pan/[n SUPPLY Patented Apr. 6, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT"OFFICE MACHINE'FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPHJPRINTS' "FROM ACONTINU- IOUS STRIP THEREOF Max KnobeLArlington, Mass., as'signor toWin- "throp-Atkins 00., Inc., Middleboro, Mass a corporation or=-'Massa'chusetts -Application J uly 12, 1949,-Seria1=No. 104,274

6' Claims. ,1

This invention relates ltosmachines. for operating on strips of sheetmaterial and particularly to a machinefor automatically operating on astrip placed therein in. response to indicia carried by the strip.

Conventional feeding means in the form of feed rolls, reciprocatingplatens, etc. cannot be depended upon to present strip material tooperating instrumentalities with such accuracy as to insure placing the.operations exactly with respect tospredetermined points, areas, etc. dueto small errors in synchronization of the feeding and operatinginstrumentalities which accumulate in long runs to produce largedisplacements, to slippage, to backlashin 'the parts and to changingatmospheric conditions which affect the length of the strip. Thisbecomes particularly important in operating on strip material which isto be divided into lengths containing repeating finite areas bearingindicia of like or unlike character or othersintelligible .matter whichwould be rendered valueless if ,the'divisions occurred withinthe compassof such an area. Such is the case Where it is desirable to outcompletely processed'strips of photographs so that the individualphotographs'will' have the printed area properly centeredwithi respectto its marginal areas and withreference to other structural featuressuch as perforations and score lines at one marginal endas may beprovided for assembling Jandfastening'the photographs in sets betweenpaper covers and for permitting removal of one or more ..of the printsfrom the assembly withoutremoving'the fastening means and covers.

The principalv objects of the invention are to ing perforations so thatthe prints maybe assembled between paper covers, and. a score line sothat one or more of the assembled prints may be separated from the papercovers without removing the rest. Otherobjects are toprovide a machineto which the strip may be introduced without preliminaryadjustment orsynchronizing of the strip with referenceto the operating. in-

istrumentalities and hence can bet-operated with unskilled help, which.will require a minimumflof 2 adjustment. duringoperation, which willrequire a minimum of alteration of the strip itself, and which willaccommodate strips of different widths.

In the illustrated machine and in accordance .with onetaspect of theinvention there are. instrumentalities for operating upon a strip ofsheet material, means for advancing the strip to a position to beoperated upon by the instrumentalities, and .means arranged in the pathof the traveling strip responsive to preformed reference marks orelements on the strip to effect actuation of the instrumenta'lities atpoints corresponding to the spacing of the reference marks or elementson the strip. Preferably the reference marks are in the form of finiteareas or spots of different light-absorbing characteristics from theremainder of the strip and the means for effecting. operation of theinstrumentalities is a light-sensitive element receiving light foreffecting its operation from that part of the traveling strip in whicharelocated the aforesaid areas or spots of 'diiierent light-absorbingcharacteristics. Alternatively the reference elementsmaybe slots andthere may be meanssin the form of a pneumatic motor, for example avacuum-actuated motor, arranged tombe supplied with air through thestrip each time a hole or slot therein comes oppositethe motor to changethe flow of air through the motoror to'break the vacuum and thereby toeffectopera'tion of suitable means to initiate actuation of theoperating instrumentalities.

The machine is specifically designed for operating upon a printed stripof photographs so as to separate the individual photographs or printsfrom each other and leave a border around each, the border at one endbeing of somewhat greater width than. that at the other end and havingvformedtherein a series of holes for receiving fastening means so thatthey may be assembled inpapercovers and a line of weakness so that oneor more of the photographs may be torn out of theassembled bookletwithout damaging ,it. ,Accordingly 'the operating instrumentalitiesinclude a cutter for severing the striptclear across, punches; forcutting the fastener .openings,...and a scoring tool for forming.theline of weakness across the strip.

Thestripfeeding means is in the form .of a pair-of feed rolls. whichadvance the strip and, in accordance with the invention, the means, foractuating the'foregoing instrumentalities con- .comitantly rendersthe'feeding means ine'fiec- 'tive and: applies brake means to the stripclose to the operating instrumentalities so as to immobilize the stripduring the operation. The strip is coiled on a reel and a guide isplaced between it and the instrumcntalities to guide the strip to theinstrumentalities. In accordance with a further aspect of the inventionboth the reel and the guide are adjustable for receiving differentwidths of strip.

Other objects and advantageous features in the construction of themachine will be apparent from the following description in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a vertical elevation of the machine as seen from the leftside;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine as seen from the top;

Fig. 3 is a vertical end elevation of the machine as seen from thefront;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a single print severed from a strip of prints;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary vertical side elevation. partly in section,enlarged to show the details of the feeding guide and brake means;

T is a fragmentary plan view of the guiding means;

Fig. 8 is a transverse vertical elevation in section on the line 38 ofFig. 2 showing the means for actuating the instrumentalities atpredetermined times;

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic illustration of the strip feeding means, brakefeeding means and the operating mechanism for effecting operationthereof;

Fig. 10 is a plan view of a preprintecl photographic strip which is tobe operated upon by the machine;

Fig. 11 is a wiring diagram of the circuit for controlling operation ofthe machine;

Fig. 12 is a vertical section through the stripcarrying reel showing thedetails of its construction; and.

Fig. 13 is a diagrammatic View of an alternative means for actuating theoperating instrumentalities.

Referring to Fig. 1, the device comprises in general a box frame id,operating instrumentalities l2, feeding means M, and means l6 forinitiating actuation of the operating instrumentalities 2 at the propertimes to divid the strip into suitable lengths and to perform certainother operations thereon as will appear hereinafter.

The box frame lil consists of a base plate l8 (Figs. 3 and 4) from whichrise vertical, spaced, parallel walls 28 and 22, bolted or otherwisesecured to the base. A lateral extension 26 of the base extends from theWall to receive part of the operating mechanism. The foregoing frame maybe a single casting rather than a fabrication.

The operating instrumentalities l2 are situated at the forward part ofthe frame and are arranged to operat on a strip of sheet materialsupplied thereto which is moved across an anvil 23 (Figs. 1 and 6)rigidly supported on rearwardly extending horizontal ledges 29 formed onthe inner sides of the walls and extends transversely between the sidewalls 20 and 22. The anvil 28 is in the form of a solid block of metalat each end of which there is formed a vertical opening 38 for receivingthe lower end of a vertical post 32. A rigid bar 34 having openings 33near its ends is mounted for vertical movement on the upper ends of theposts 32, extends transversely of the anvil,

and forms a support for the operating instrumentalities which areattached to it. To this end the forward face of the bar 34 is recessedto form in its lower front corner a right-angle rabbet 35 (Fig. 6) andin this rabbet there are bolted the operating instrumentalities whichconsist of a scoring tool (it, a punch 40 and a cut-off member 42. Thescoring tool consists of a fiat blade hav ing a blunt edge which isarranged to be brought into engagement with the upper surface of a stripresting on the anvil and to scor the upper surface sufliciently so thatit forms a line of weakness therein. Preferably the operating edge ofthe scoring tool is not a straight edge but is somewhat wavy so as toimpart what is known as a deckled edge to the strip material uponseparation of the scored parts. The punch ii! comprises a fiat barhaving along its lower edge a plurality of spaced teeth 13 (Fig. 8),each of which is substantially rectangular in cross section, forpunching through the strip of material resting on the anvil so as toform a plurality of spaced rectangular openings in the strip throughwhich a spiral-type hinge member such as is employed in making up orassembling a plurality of the prints between paper covers may beinserted. A plurality of openings 4-! corresponding to the teeth 15 areformed through the anvil below the punch bar into which the lower endsof th teeth telescope during the punching operation to provide a cleanshearing cut and through which the severed waste pieces may bedischarged. The cut-off member is also in the form of a fiat bar and hasa lower cutting edge which cooperates with the forward edge of the anvilto shear the strip clear across.

The bar E l which carries the foregoing instrumentalities is movedvertically by attachment to the under side of an overhanging,forwardly-projecting web 6d, the opposite ends of which are formedintegral with spaced upwardly-projecting cheeks 46 which in turn areformed integral with the forward ends of a pair of spaced rails M (Fig.2) joined by cross rails 19 to form a rigid frame $53 which is ofgenerally rectangular shape and extends rearwardly 0f the machinebetween the side walls 26 and 22. At the rear end of the frame there areupwardly-projecting cheeks 50 (Fig. 1) which are pivotally supported onstuds 52 set into the side walls so that the frame 8 may he raised andlowered about the pivots 52 and hence to raise and lower the operatinginstrumentalities carried by the forward end of the frame with respectto the anvil 25. Since the frame 48 is pivoted at one end and is rockedon the pivot, its forward end moves in an arc and even though the radiusof this are is comparatively long as represented by the distance betweenthe center of the openings 32 and the centers of the pivots G2, theposts would not slide freely into and out of the openings during rockingmovement of the frame because the parts are perpendicular to the anvil.In order topermit free movement it is necessary to provide a smallclearance to compensatefor the slight arcuate movement of the holesrelative to the posts and this may be accomplished either by making theholes of slightly larger diameter than the posts or by making the postsof slightly smaller diameter than the holes. Reciprocation of the frame48 is effected by means of a link 54 (Fig. 1) pivotally fastened to ahorizontal shaft 56, the ends of which are journaled in th side rails ofthe frame 48 and with its lower end pivotally connected to an eccentricpin 58 fixed to one end of a shaft Ed journaled for rotation aboutac'zaaos a horizontal axis in *a bearing 6'2 and :driven through theintermediary 0f -a one-revolution clutcht l (Figs. 2and 3) from a drive'shaft fifi connected for continuous rotation i through a gear-reductionunit I 63 to amotor' M fastened to the' lateral extensionfifi at thebase. A single rotation of the eccentric pin'58 will be effected eachtime the clutch 64-is engaged to move the 'frame48 downwardly'about itspivots 52 thus to bring the operating-instrumentalities into engagementwitha strip i-estin-gonthe anvil and then'to return theinstrumentalities to their inoperativeposition. GClutching anddeclutching of the one-way clutch *B4 will be described hereinafter.

The strip feedingmeans I4 (Figs. 1; Sand-9) is comprised of alowerconstantly dr-iven feed roll andan upper feed'rol1'I2,=Whichrotates freely abouta horizontal axis parallel to theaxisof the roll1|];serving merely to hold the strip against the driven feedrollJIl. The':lower feed roll I0 is mounted for rotation I on a horizontal shaft. I4journaled in the side Walls 2|] and 22 and has on 'oneend apulley I6'(FigsJ'Z' and 3) over which there is placed a-be'lt 13,- the oppositeend of which 'is-engaged with a pulley- 83 fixed to theshafttfi.-=Accordingly the feed roll 'lfi isconstantly rotated aslongas theimotorMis energized. The upper feed roll "I2 is journaled between a .pairof upwardly extending arms 82whichare formed integral with aipairof-spaced rails 84- which extend forwardly toward the front of themachineand are pivotally: supported at 86 on the side walls so that theupper feed-roll '12 maybemoved to and from the upper surfacef the lowerfeed roll III. The rails84 are j'oined bycross, rails 85 (Fig. 2)to'form a rigid fram a'l. Normally the frame 81 is drawndownwardly-inacounterclockwise direction about its pivots 86 so as tohold the upper feed roll 'I'Z'in contact with the surface of the lowerfeed rollbya yoke (Figs. 1, 4' and9) which includes spaced legs88,'the upper-ends of which are pivotally 'supportedon .pins 90 'setintothe side rails 84. The lower end ofone vofthe legs '88 extends nearly tothe'base plateand is pivotally fastened toone end of a lever- 96.rBetWeen the legs' 88 there is fastened a-web 9 Ixtothe=under sideofwhich' there is in turn fastened an armature, not-shown, whichforms'part of a solenoid L2, the coil ofthe magnet 93 of which isfastened to an adjustable platform' 95 below .the armature. a

"Whenthe solenoidLZ is energized themagnet attracts thearmature holdingit"thereagainst and thereby holds'the rear endzof' the frame'tldepressed. A spring Ts fastened to the forwardsend of the frames? andto'therbaseplate tends to pull it *in clockwise directionabouti itspivot and hence to separate the feed rolls. The lever 96 is pivoted onastud 98 set into the wall 20 andits forward end I09 is arranged toliewithin a cam groove IfiI formed on a cam I62 fastened to the shaft68. When the solenoid L2 is disengaged by interruption of'its circuit aswill appear hereinafter, the spring'Ts tiltsthe framed! so as todisengage the armature SI from' the magnet fi3. This inturn tilts 'thelever 96, the rear-end of which is connected to oneof the legs 88 inadirection to withdraw the forward ends of'the lever "from the notch 85;thereby releasing the one revolution clutch. The tilting 0f theframealso lifts theupper roll I2 out ofengagement withthe lower roll I0thereby to'discontinue'a positive feed of th strip passing betweenthesame. To restore feeding. movement of the..strip.a' leverIfld-is'pivposition the nub IIfi engageswthe end IIO of the ieverlMthereby depressing its rear end and restoring thearmature toitspositionsagainst the magnet which -is :now energized and will, whenthe armature is mechanically restored thereto, hold the armaturethereagainst.

The platform 95 is comparatively long; being formed integral withthedower, part of the. post I08 so that while it is fixedxat'its forwardend, its rear end maybe elevated or depressed within limits to adj ustthe. iheightwise' position of the magnet. An adjusting screw I09 isfixedin the free end of the :platform for this purpose and has a lowerend resting on the baseplate.

"The strip; materialis: advanced. by the feeding =means froma reel I'IB(Figs; 1-,and'2) :mounted on a horizontal shaft I18 journaled inopenbearing slots I20 formedin the sidewalls and is'deliver-ed throughzaguide I22. (Figs. 1 and'G) to the anvil 28 where it is acted upon by.the foregoing instrumentalities. -While3the feeding of the strip isinterruptedby. separation of the upper feed roll fromthe lower feedroll,-a;more positive immobilization of'the strip is..-desirab1etoinsure accuracy of.:placement. :Accordingly brake means I24 (Figaroand9) isprovidedforclamping the strip against the anvil aheadzof. theoperating-instrumental-ities. The .brake :means is carried attheiforwardends .of the frame 81 on upwardly projecting arms-I26betweenzthe upper ends of whichis bolted a'transversely-extending barI28 (Fig. 6) havingiin itsiunderside a-channel I30 for reception of abar =.I 32. In" the lower surface of thexbar I32 there is fastened-arubber or other resilient friction strip I34. lThebar I32 is fastened'ln thechannel. I32 by means'of bolts I36. Since the brakemember issecuredto the forward end of the frame 8!, tilting movement of the frameto separate the upper rollv I2 from the lowerroll I0 concomitantlybrings thebrake strip I34 into engagement;withithe travelingstripandpresses it firmly against .the. upper surface 0f. the anvil.

F'Ihe' reel II6 (Figs. 1, 2=and 12) upon which the strip is coiledcomprisesazcylindrical body portion I38zand end flanges I45! and I42which have on theiroutersurfaces hubs I44 and I46. .Thehubsareboredaxially so as to receive the :horizontal' shaft H8 and tosupport the reel for rotation :thereabout'between the walls 20 and Oneof' the flanges; namely the flange I42 (Fig; 12), is constructed tobeseparably associated with the cylindrical-body portion I38 and has ontheside opposite the hubv I46 a corresponding hub I48. There isinterposed between the hub I48 and the flange I42 an intermediate hubI50 which has-a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the bodyportion I38. The body portionhas an axialpassage I52 therethrough intowhich the hubs I46 and I48 are adapted telescopically to fit, and withthe foregoing construction it is apparent that the width of the reel,that is, the distance between the flanges I40 and I42 may be changed byreversing the position of the flange I42, that is by engaging one ortheotherof the "hubs I46, I48 within the passage I52. In one positionthe intermediate hub I50 forms'an extension-of the surface of the bodyportion I38 so that the reel will reotally mounted on a studIOG atthetop of a post ceive a strip bfone width --whi1e"-in"the" other 7position the intermediate hub I50 will be situated at the outside andthe reel will be shortened by the width of the intermediate hub so as toaccommodate a strip of narrower width.

The foregoing construction permits use of a reel which has a constantover-all length between hubs, thereby affording no difficulties with thebearings, the distance between which is fixed by the spacing of thewalls 29-22. A springpressed nub I54 (Fig. 2) is fastened to the wall ina position to engage an end of the shaft I I8 to hold it in place.

The guide I22 (Figs. 1 and 6) consists of a fiat plate I56 of generallyrectangular shape, the lateral edges of which are arranged to rest oninwardly projecting ledges I58 (Fig. 7) formed on the inner surface ofthe walls 20 and 22 at such a level that its upper surface issubstantially tangent to the upper surface of the feed roll Ill and inthe plane of the upper surface I of the anvil 28. There is fastened tothe upper surface of the plate I56 a pair of spaced angles forming withthe plate guide channels ISI] for engaging the marginal edges of a stripadvanced by the feed rolls toward the operating instrumentalities and tohold it centered with respect thereto. On the underside of the platethere is provided a second pair of spaced side channels I62 arranged ata difierent spacing so that a wider or narrower strip may be guidedthereby. Thus by reversing the position of the guide plate I56 andadjusting the size of the reel IIG, strips of two different widths maybe operated upon in the present machine.

The means I6 for bringing the operating instrumentalities intoengagement with the strip at the proper time is responsive to certainreference marks carried by the traveling strip to effect the foregoingactuation in accordance with the spacing of the reference marks thereon.As illustrated (Figs. 8, 9 and 11) a source of light for example, asmall electric bulb set into a socket I64 fastened in the wall 20 isarranged below the anvil 28. To concentrate the light and project itvertically upward, a bracket I66 is fastened I to the wall 20 so as tosupport a reflector I68 below the bulb and a lens I'II] above the bulbin such a manner as to direct rays from the bulb vertically upwardtoward a light-sensitive cell P housed within a hood I14 fastened to theframe above the operating instrumentalities. A hole H6 is drilled in theanvil 28 directly above and in axial alignment with the center line ofthe lens IH} into which there is set a translucent member, for example,a quartz or Lucite rod I78 or other similar material havingunidirectional light-transmitting properties. Holes are drilled in thepunch bar, the block 34 and the lip 44 to form a vertical passage I80.Another lighttransmitting rod I82 is placed in the vertical passage soas to be in axial end-to-end alignment with the light-transmitting rodI'IB. The lower end of the rod I82 is above the anvil sufliciently topermit free movement of the strip below it and is flush with the underside of a guide plate I83, the under surface of which is engaged withthe upper surface of a strip resting on the anvil. Accordingly the rodsI18 and I82 provide a continuous conduit for the passage of light fromthe bulb through the anvil, paper and operating instrumentalities. Theupper end of the rod I82 enters an aperture in the hood I74 and is fixedthereto so that light transmitted by means of the foregoing rods fromthe light bulb will be carried to the light-sensitive cell P. The

passage I is sufliciently large so that the operating instrumentalitiesmay reciprocate vertically relative to the rod. The central portion ofthe plate I83 is cut away to permit operation of the punches on thestrip. The sensitive cell P is normally adjusted so that as the striptravels over the anvil there is sufiicient light conducted thereto andthrough the strip to activate it and activation of the sensitive cell isarranged through a suitable circuit which will be described hereinafterto energize the coil of the magnet 93 and hence hold the one-revolutionclutch inoperative. The strip s which is being operated upon (Fig. 10)has on it a series of spaced indicia in the form of narrow referencemarks 1 situated between printed areas p in the blank bordering areas bbetween the printed areas. The reference marks 1 are made byoverexposing the sensitized film thereby to produce black marks,although other means could be used to make appropriate marks, which willpass less light than the portions of the strip between them; accordinglywhen one of the reference marks passes between the ends of thelight-transmitting rods, the light intensity is reduced so that thelight-sensitive cell P responds and actuates the aforesaid circuitmomentarily to deenergize the coil which in turn permits the spring Tsto effect operation of the one-revolution clutch and this in turn bringsabout operation of the operating instrumentalities to out off a sectionof the strip, punch it so as to form a series of apertures or holes htherein and to form a score line 10 thereacross.

The aforementioned circuit for operating the instrumentalities inconjunction with and in response to the light-sensitive cell P, as shownin Fig. 11, includes a tube VI operable by response of the cell toeffect actuation of a solenoid LI. This in turn closes a switch SIwhich, by way of a tube V2, energizes the solenoid L2 which, asheretofore explained, is constituted by the magnet and armature 93 andSI, respectively.

An alternative means (Fig. 13) may be employed to bring about actuationof the operating instrumentalities in which air is the controllingmedium. As illustrated, in lieu of filling the drilled hole I16 with alight-transmitting rod, the light source 1 and the light-sensitive cellP, an air motor a in the form of a bellows is clamped to the under sideof the anvil over the drilled hole. The lower end of the bellows isconnected by a flexible conduit 0 to an exhaust engine or place of lowpressure and removal of air from the bellows normally tends to collapseit in 0pposition to a coil spring d situated within it which tends tohold it extended. A lever e pivotally fastened to the lower end of thebellows will be operated by movement of the latter to actuate the switchS shown in Fig. 11. The reference elements 7" on the strip will now besmall slots or holes and each time a hole in the strip comes oppositethe drilled hole in the anvil the vacuum will be broken, the spring dwill extend the bellows and the lever e will close the switch S, henceactuating the solenoid L2 as heretofore described. In this arrangementthe tube VI and the solenoid LI will be omitted.

In operation when a light beam directed toward the light-sensitive cellP is momentarily interrupted by the passage of a reference mark r on thestrip, current flow from the power supply will be interrupted so thatthe grid in the tube VI will become negative. This in turn interruptsthe current flow through the tube VI with the result that the solenoidLI will be deacvasos energized thereby opening-the switch SI. As soon astheswitch SI opens, the grid of the tube V2 will become negatively:biasedandthe solenoid L2 will be deenergized. lmmediately upondeenergization of the solenoid-L2, the spring Ts tilts the frame 84which separates the armature 9| fromthe magnet 93. This in turn tiltsthe lever 96, the rear end of which is connected to one of the arms 88in a direction to withdraw the forward end of the lever from the notch95 so that the one-revolution clutch is released. The shaft 60 is thenrotated through one revolution to actuate the operatinginstrumentalities. In the interim between the time that the index markon the strip cuts ofi the light to the light-sensitive cell and theactual discontinuance of feeding movement and clamping of the strip, theindex mark will have moved beyond the light-sensitive cell so that thelight beam is re-established. As soon as the light again passes to thecell P the grid in the tube VI becomes positively biased, current fiowsthrough solenoid LI, and the switch SI is closed. Closing of the switchSI makes the grid of the tube V2 positive, thus reenergizing thesolenoid L2. The magnet of the solenoid L2, however, is not strongenough to draw the armature back to it but this is taken care of so thatthe armature is positively restored to its original position against themagnet by tilting of the lever I04, the forward end of which is raisedby the nub M6 on the cam as the latter completes a full revolution.Simultaneously the lever 96 is tilted in a direction to raise itsforward end into a position to reengage the notch 95 and hence renderthe one-revolution clutch inoperative.

If the alternative means for actuating the operating instrumentalitiesis employed, the switch S will be actuated by means of the bellows ainstead of the light-sensitive cell and associated tube VI and solenoidLl.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purposeof illustration only and that this invention includes all modificationsand equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A strip cutting and punching machine comprising a frame, an anvil onsaid frame, a rocker mounted on the frame, said rocker being pivoted atits rear end to the frame and having its forward end located adjacent tothe anvil, said rocker being movable on its pivot to raise and lower itsforward end with respect to the anvil, cutting and punchinginstrumentalities fast to the forward end of the rocker for movementtherewith to and from the anvil, the length of the rocker being suchthat the movement of the cutting and punching instrumentalities issubstantially vertical with respect to the anvil, power operated meansoperable intermittently to depress the forward end of the rocker toeffect cutting and punching and then to elevate it, said power operatedmeans being responsive to a signal, a second rocker on the frame pivotedintermediate its end for rocking movement, the forward end of saidsecond rocker being close to the cutting and punching instrumentalities,a brake block carried by the forward end of said second rocker movableby said second rocker into engagement with the anvil just behind thecutting and punching instrumentalities, a driven feed roll on the framenear the rear end of the second rocker, an idle feed roll journaled onsaid second rocker for movement into and out of enease e t w t th dr n fe 0 power op ated means for rocking the second rockerfrom a position inwhich the feed rolls are' engaged for feeding a strip of materialbetween them toward the anvil to a position in which they are disengagedand the brake block ispressed against the strip overlying the anvil tohold the strip immobile, said signal for effecting operation of thepower operated means for depressing the first rocker simultaneously.efiecting operation of the power operated. means for rocking the seOOId rocker in a direction to disengage the feed and apply the brake.

2. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein theanvil and forward end of the first rocker have cooperating guide membersfor constraining the cutting and punching instrumentalities to movementin a predetermined path.

3. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein thesignal is carried by the strip and there is means responsive to themovement of the signal to a predetermined position on the anvil toeffect actuation of said power operated means.

A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein thesignal is carried by the strip, the strip supporting surface of theanvil has an aperture therein adjacent to the cutting and punchinginstrumentalities, there is a light source and light sensitive elementarranged opposite the ends of the aperture and in vertical alignmenttherewith and the light sensitive element is responsive to a change inthe amount of light transmitted to it from the light source through theaperture and the strip to effect actuation of the power operative means.

5. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein thesignal is carried by the strip, the anvil and support for the cuttingand punching instrumentalities have vertically aligned apertures thereinadjacent the cutting and punching instrumentalities, located at oppositefaces of the strip, there is a light source and light sensitive elementlocated above and below the apertures and in vertical alignmenttherewith, the light sensitive element is responsive to a change of theamount of light transmitted from the light source through the aperturesand the strip to efiect actuation of the power operated means and thereis a light collocating means located between the light sensitive elementand the light source for enhancing the transmission of said lightthrough said apertures.

6. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein thesignal is carried by the strip, the anvil and support for the cuttingand punching means have vertically aligned 3,138l'- tures thereinadjacent to the cutting and punching means at opposite faces of thestrip, there is a light source and light sensitive element located belowand above the apertures and vertically aligned therewith, the lightsensitive element being located out of the range of movement of saidsupport, the light sensitive element is responsive to a change in thelight transmitted from the light source through the apertures and thestrip to efiect actuation of the power operated means, there is acollocating element located between the light source and the lower endof the aperture in the anvil for directing light thereto, and a lightconducting element extending through the aperture in the support fromthe anvil upwardly to the light sensitive element, said conductingelement being fixed. and said support being slidable on it.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 5Number Name Date 810,977 Poure Jan. 30, 1906 851,366 Mossberg Apr. 23,1907 947,744 Stohr Jan. 25, 1910 Foote Mar. 17, 1914 Number 12 Name DateCumfer Dec. 29, 1925 Ferenci Jan. 22, 1935 Rubens Apr. 2, 1935 GulliksenAug. 11, 1936 Hayssen Nov. 3, 1942 Pitt et a1. Jan. 4, 1944 Bascom eta1. Feb. 8, 1944 Sjostrom Apr. 11, 1944

